This week it was announced that AT&T will be buying DirecTV for approximately $50 billion dollars. Not only does that completely change the media landscape, giving consumers less choice with their cable, it also affects the world of home security.
DirecTV in 2013 bought a small DIY home alarm company called Lifeshield. The idea was to be able to add home security as a bundled service to DirecTV customers. If even an incredibly small amount of DirecTV subscribers decided to add the service, it would result in huge numbers for Lifeshield and home recurring revenue for DirecTV.
From the point of the purchase to mid-2014, DirecTV and Lifeshield were working on integrating the company/product, figuring out how to make the acquisition work.
How does AT&T buying DirecTV effect the Lifeshield product? AT&T has their own home alarm product, Digital Life, so the acquisition of DirecTV by AT&T essentially means the end of Lifeshield. The Lifeshield product has some interesting features, however it's obvious to see that this wasn't the reason they bought the company, but rather the massive subscriber base for their cable services was. Lifeshield does not fit into their business strategy and the acquisition means it's over for Lifeshield.
I'm not sure what this means to current Lifeshield subscribers. Perhaps another DIY home alarm company, like Protect America or Frontpoint will acquire the accounts. Or perhaps they'll be replaced with an AT&T Digital Life home alarm system. There also is the possibility of the company ceasing services and Lifeshield subscribers just having their systems turned off.
If you are currently looking for a DIY home alarm system, there are many other options out there. Look for a home alarm that requires no contract and has a low monthly monitoring rate under $20/month. DIY home security is the way to go, as with the ease of new technology, installers are no longer necessary.
We at Think Protection look forward to seeing how the AT&T/DirecTV deal works out and seeing what happens with Lifeshield. We've been wrong before, however, we strongly believe that we've seen the end of the Lifeshield product.
